Galway city parking app wins eGovernment award — ‘The aim was to give people greater choice in how they pay’
Galway City Council’s parking app has won an eGovernment award.
Galway’s “Many Ways to Pay” parking app landed Galway City Council the Digital Services, Payments and Transactions award at Ireland’s 23rd eGovernment Awards ceremony.
The ceremony was held on September 24 at UCD’s O’Reilly Hall in Belfield in Dublin and accepting the award was Galway City Council’s Director of Services Patrick Greene.
The award recognises the council’s transformation of its parking payment service, moving from pay-and-display machines to a flexible app-based model.
Drivers can utilise the app to pay for parking, giving them the ability to top up digitally and remotely. Additional payment options include Payzone retailers around Galway city, as well as online and via telephone.
The project was developed following a review of the council’s parking payment and management systems.
“Winning this award is a welcome recognition of the work undertaken across Galway City Council to provide motorists with a more flexible, efficient and accessible parking payment service,” Mr Greene said.
“The aim of the project was not simply to introduce a new digital system, but to give people greater choice in how they pay. Customers can use the app, website or telephone service, while cash and in-person options remain available through participating Payzone retailers.”
The parking app was also shortlisted under the ‘Smart Cities and Urban Development Award’ at the eGovernment awards.
Competition in the award category included Electric Ireland’s mobile app, Ireland’s Content Pool from Fáilte Ireland, the Pre-Hospital Emergency Care Council certification platform, and the Health Insurance Authority Comparison Tool.
Following the transition away from pay machines owned by UTS technologies in 2025, figures show that parking income fell by €391,400 from July and December 2025 compared with the same period in 2024.
In September 2026, a report with one-year’s worth of parking data was listed on the agenda for Galway City Council’s plenary meeting. However, the report was deferred, and city councillors could not discuss it.
The report, seen by the Irish Independent, estimates the total parking income from 2026 surpassing €3.3 million, with an additional €1.3 million from traffic fines.
The report shows figures gathered from about 70,000 regular users across the last 12 months. It says the monthly average exceeds 64,000 parking transactions, while 2,600 are processed daily. The bulk of transactions (87pc) are processed through the Galway city app and the website, while the remaining are through Payzone app and retailers.